Key figures
Georgia payroll
2026, with sources
Two registrations, two agencies
Withholding is registered with the Department of Revenue through the Georgia Tax Center and remitted on the schedule the Department assigns; W-2s and the Form G-1003 reconciliation are due January 31. Unemployment insurance is a separate account with the Georgia Department of Labor, reported quarterly on the DOL-4N.
New and newly covered employers pay a total unemployment rate of 2.70% on the first $9,500 of each employee’s wages until they qualify for an experience-rated rate. Employees hired or rehired must be reported to the Georgia New Hire Reporting Program within 10 days.
What Georgia does not add
Georgia has no state paid leave or disability program funded through payroll, no local income taxes, and no minimum wage above the federal rate, so payroll here is mostly withholding and unemployment insurance.
HB 463 changed the employee side as well as the rate: it raised the standard deduction and dependent exemptions for 2026 and adds a temporary, limited Georgia exclusion for part of employees’ overtime pay and tips. The Department of Revenue’s withholding tables and instructions, not the statute, are what payroll applies, so the 4.99% rate takes effect in a paycheck only once the provider loads the updated tables.
A worked example of the unemployment cost: a new employer pays 2.70% on the first $9,500 of each employee’s wages, $256.50 per employee a year, so a four-person Atlanta team costs $1,026 a year in state unemployment tax, all of it paid in the quarters before each salary passes $9,500.
Deadlines
- Last day of the month after the quarterEmployer’s Quarterly Tax and Wage ReportDOL-4N
- January 31Annual withholding reconciliation and W-2sForm G-1003
- Within 10 days of hireNew hire report
The federal baseline
This page covers what Georgia adds. The federal rules underneath it apply here too.
Common questions
What is the minimum wage in Georgia?
Georgia’s state minimum wage law sets a rate below the federal minimum, so employers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act, which is nearly every startup, pay at least the federal $7.25 an hour. No Georgia city sets a higher private-sector minimum.
Is there any local payroll tax in Atlanta?
No. Georgia has no local income or payroll taxes, so state withholding at 4.99% for 2026 and the unemployment tax on the first $9,500 of wages are the state-level payroll taxes.
Payroll next door
- ALAlabama payrollAlabama payroll is state withholding at 2% to 5%, unemployment tax at 2.7% on the first $8,000 for new employers, new-hire reports within seven days, and city occupational taxes in places like Birmingham.
- FLFlorida payrollFlorida payroll has no state income tax withholding; the obligations are reemployment tax at 2.7% on $7,000 for new employers, new-hire reporting, a $15.00 minimum wage, and workers’ comp from four employees.
- NCNorth Carolina payrollNorth Carolina payroll is flat 3.99% withholding on Form NC-4 and NC-5, unemployment insurance at 1.0% on $34,200 for new employers, workers’ comp from three employees counting officers, and E-Verify from 25.
- SCSouth Carolina payrollSouth Carolina payroll is withholding at 1.99% and 5.21% for 2026, unemployment insurance at 1.060% on $14,000 for new employers, written pay terms at hire, final pay within 48 hours, and workers’ comp from four employees.
- TNTennessee payrollTennessee payroll has no state income tax or local wage tax; it is unemployment premiums on the first $7,000 of wages, new-hire reports in 20 days, and workers’ comp from five employees counting officers.
How Georgia compares
- No tax on wagesStates with no state income tax on wagesGeorgia: withholds state income tax. 9 of 51 states are on the list.
- Paid leave payrollStates with a paid leave or disability payroll programGeorgia: no state program. 16 of 51 states are on the list.
- Local payroll taxStates with city, county or district payroll taxesGeorgia: state-level only. 14 of 51 states are on the list.
Founder guides on this
- PeopleContractor or employee? Classification for startupsContractor or employee depends on control, not the contract. The IRS test, state rules, 1099s, payroll registration and the cost of getting it wrong.
- ComplianceFirst-year compliance calendar for a Delaware C-corpDelaware franchise tax, 1099s, the federal return, payroll filings, state annual reports and sales tax: the deadlines a young C-corp misses most, by month.
More of the Georgia guide
- AccountingAccounting and state tax in GeorgiaCorporate tax, conformity to federal rules, apportionment and what it does to your books
- ReceivablesReceivables and sales tax in GeorgiaSales tax registration, economic nexus, whether SaaS is taxable, and collecting from customers
- PayablesPayables and contractors in GeorgiaPaying vendors and contractors: 1099 filing, use tax, contractor tests and withholding
- ComplianceCompliance and filings in GeorgiaRegistering to do business, annual reports, franchise tax and the filing calendar
- AdvisoryAdvisory: credits and decisions in GeorgiaCredits, incentives and the decisions that are cheaper to get right the first time
Sources
Checked against each agency’s own page on . Rates and thresholds change, usually on January 1.
General information for US companies, not tax, legal or accounting advice for yours. Rules and thresholds change; confirm the specifics with a CPA or the agency before you act on them.